Surprise Homecoming
by BarrelRacingAndChannyandZammie
Summary: I'm back!;D Here's a sneakpeak of my story before you click that pretty little button to read it: "Hi, buddy," he smiled, as he squatted down to pick his son up. Little Carson held onto Ty as if his life depended on it. "I missed you, daddy," Carson said, and you could tell he was close to tears.


**Soooo…I wrote a new story!:D I hope you like it(:**

**Based off of the TLC show: Surprise Homecoming.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own anything Lauren Brooke owns. I do own little Carson and Gracie and everything else Lauren Brooke doesn't(:**

"Mommy! When are we going?" my three year old daughter, Gracelynn, asked me.

"In just a minute, sweetheart. I just have to put on my shoes," I smiled at her.

"Otay," she smiled, before running out of the room, with her sandy blonde hair bouncing.

I just chuckled as I slipped into my new pair of boots.

She was something else, that's for sure.

She has emerald green eyes and a bright smile that can light up the room in a second. She was the sweetest thing in the world, but if she's in a bad mood, you better stay out of her way…

She reminds me so much of her father, Ty…

Ty and I married when I was 21, so almost 8 years ago. Not long before we got married, Ty graduated from West Point and not long after he went to Afghanistan for a year and a half. A few years later we had our first child, Carson Zachary Baldwin, who is now four.

A year later, we found out I was pregnant with our second child.

I was nine months pregnant with Gracie, when we found out Ty had to leave.

He has been gone for about 2 ½ to three years now.

Ty has gotten to see his daughter, just never in person. I have sent pictures and we talk daily usually using Skype.

It's been so hard on all of us…especially Carson.

We have hardly gotten to do anything as a family with me running the ranch, but the kids do help out.

Tonight, though, we were all going down to Lou's house, which she and Scott built on Heartland, but near the dude ranch, for a BBQ that the whole town was coming to.

Lou told me that there was a special surprise for us, so we absolutely had to come.

As I thought about what it could be, I slipped my boots on before I headed downstairs.

"Ready you two?" I asked Carson and Gracie, who were both sitting in the living room.

Gracie who was sitting on the floor, jumped up, and ran to me.

"Yes!" she smiled, and pulled at my hand.

"Ok. Hang on. I just have to grab your cardigan," I smiled, as I walked to the living room to grab the white cardigan on the back of the couch.

Carson, who was sitting on the couch, climbed off, and ran into the kitchen, and I followed.

Carson was 4 years old. He had dark green eyes with a mop of brown hair on his head. He was one of the sweetest, yet toughest kids you will ever meet in your life. He very rarely gets mad about something. He was currently wearing a new pair of Wrangler jeans with a green polo shirt and his new Justin boots that were brown and green, and his dog tags that his father gave him before he left.

Ty gave Carson a copy of his dog tags before he left. Before Ty left for Afghanistan, Carson would always wear them. It was special to him. He felt like his daddy whenever he wore them. Carson almost never took them off. Wherever we went he wore them with pride. It was like having a piece of his father here with him.

Gracelynn Madysonn Baldwin…this child was a force to be reckoned with... She is definitely going to be the death of me. Aside from her eyes, Gracie has nothing from her father but her attitude…and I swear, someone took Ty's attitude from him and stuck it in Gracie. She was as hardheaded and stubborn and sassy as she could be. She never wanted to listen to anything anybody told her. If she didn't want to hear you she would tell you to be quiet or ignore you. She was also very strong willed. If somebody told her she couldn't do something, she would prove them wrong…trust me. I have learned this on several occasions. She was a sweet little girl, but she could have a temper. Make her mad and she goes on a rampage. When she is mad, you better stay out of her way.

She was wearing a green sundress that was similar to mine, with a black cardigan and her new black and green boots. Her curly blonde hair had a black bow in it. She looked so adorable.

I was wearing a black sundress with a western styled belt sort of and my new brown and white square-toed Justin boots, and had my blonde hair braided to the side.

Together we walked out of the house, and all got into our new, black Chevy Silverado.

Business at Heartland has been sky high. While I am still doing my mother's work, we are also buying, breeding, training, and selling show jumpers, and we have made a lot of money from that. Also, with the dude ranch, we bring in nearly three times as much money as we were before.

But that's not the only thing that has changed around here.

As you know, Ty is stationed in Afghanistan, but a few years ago, Grandpa passed away. It was so hard on all of us, especially me and Lou.

Lou and Scott are married, and they have two kids, Holly, their oldest, and Adalyn, their youngest little girl. They did build a huge house down by the dude ranch, so she could run it better.

Also, Soraya is married to Matt and they are expecting a little boy very soon. We are all very excited for them.

We drove down the road that led to Scott and Lou's place, and parked in the large yard.

The kids jumped out of the truck and ran to where Holly and Adalyn were playing with some of the other kids from town.

I looked around and saw Scott and the grill talking with Ben, Caleb, and Matt, and some other guys from town, and then saw Lou talking with Lisa, Soraya, and Ashley, so I walked over to them.

"Hey, girls," I smiled at them.

"Hey Amy! It's good to see you!" Ashley smiled, brightly.

That's another thing that has changed. Ashley.

She was definitely not the same girl. Sure, she was still filthy rich since she was a nationally ranked show jumper, she wasn't rude like she was before. She was actually super, super sweet, and we have become really good friends. She was engaged to Ben, and they are supposed to get married in just a few months.

"Hey, Ash! It's good to see you too!" I smiled.

I looked at Soraya and her expanding belly and smiled.

"Long time, no see. How far along are you?" I asked my glowing best friend.

"I know! And six months," she smiled brightly.

"Congrats again. I am so, so, so happy for you and Matt!" I said, hugging her.

"Thanks Amy," she smiled, hugging me back.

For the rest of the night, we all danced, and ate, and just had a really good time.

Since I am not only running Heartland, but also taking care of two kids, I hardly have any time to myself, so this was really nice.

Lou called me and asked me to help her carry a cake out to the yard.

"You're going to love it! I am very sure of that," Lou smiled, as we entered the kitchen.

On one of the counters in the kitchen, was a large box that held the cake.

"Oh my gosh, Lou! Just the _box _looks big!" I laughed.

"Wait until you see the cake," Lou smiled, and there was a glint in her eyes. Like she knew something that I didn't.

Together, we carried the large box outside and sat it on one of the 4 tables that had been set up.

"Gracie, Carson. Why don't you come over here and help mommy take the top of the box off the cake?" Lou smiled.

"Otay," Gracie smiled, and the two ran over to where I was at.

"Okay, on three. 1...2...3!" Lou smiled, and we lifted the top off.

When I saw the cake, I gasped.

It was a three tiered cake that was completely camouflage. All around it were pictures of Ty, me, and the kids, all from different occasions.

Some were from our wedding, when Carson and Gracie were born, Christmas, Easter, birthdays, and so many more events.

There were also little army men placed randomly around, too.

Also, there was a replica of Ty's dog tags on one side.

It was an amazing cake, but what was written on the very top was what made me cry.

'_Welcome home, Ty'_

"Do you like it?" I heard a deep voice say, and I whirled around to look straight at the chest of the man I fell in love with so many years ago.

The man I married, and the father of my kids.

I looked up to his smiling face, before jumping into his arms.

He quickly wrapped his arms around my waist, and held me tight.

"Daddy!" we heard a young boy say.

Carson.

I quickly had Ty put me down so he could see his son.

"Hi, buddy," he smiled, as he squatted down to pick his son up.

Little Carson held onto Ty as if his life depended on it.

"I missed you, daddy," Carson said, and you could tell he was close to tears.

I felt a presence next to me, so I looked down to see Gracie there, looking shy.

I smiled and picked her up.

She wrapped her arms around my neck and we watched the two.

Ty looked up, a few moments to see Gracie.

His face lit up, and he stood up, still holding Carson, and walked over to us.

"Hi there," he smiled, stoking his daughter's cheek.

Gracie smiled slightly still watching the man in front of her.

Carson started squirming, wanting down, so Ty gently sat him down, before turning back toward us.

"Who is that, Gracie?" I asked.

"Daddy," she smiled, and I thought Ty was going to burst with happiness.

A chorus of awes went through the crowd that was standing around.

"Can I see you?" he asked, reaching his arms out.

Gracie eagerly went, and held onto Ty.

Ty got tears in his eyes from not only seeing his daughter for the first time in person, but also holding her.

"Hi, baby," he said, kissing her head.

Gracie laid her head down on Ty's shoulder, and he gently squeezed her.

I walked over to where my kids and husband were, and said, "Welcome home, honey."

"It's good to be back," he said, squeezing my shoulders and kissing my head.

All around us, flashes were going off from cameras and phones.

"I love you," Ty muttered into my hair.

"And I love you," I said, before kissing him.

As I stood there, I really looked at Ty. He was still the same height but he had gotten slimmer and gained more muscle. His hair was just about the same length, maybe a little bit shorter. As I stood there, watching him with our two children, I realized that he may have changed in appearance slightly, Ty was the loving man as he was when he left. I could see how deeply he cared for his kids, who were spitting images of him.

At last this man was home.

Finally, home. Where he belongs.

**So…like? Dislike? Pweaaaasee let me know!(: I haven't written on here in a long time, so I hope I haven't lost my touch…;)**

**Review!:D**


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